Nexter ASCALON concept. Artillery armament for the tank of the future
France and Germany intend to develop a promising main battle tank MGCS and are now working together to determine its appearance. Among other things, the issue of weapons is being worked out and various options for artillery systems are being proposed. So, the French company Nexter proposes to equip the MBT with its new ASCALON gun of increased caliber with increased characteristics.
Promising direction
The Nexter Group has solid experience in the development and production of tank guns. In addition, in the past, she has experimented with systems of increased power and increased caliber. Another project of this kind, probably using the existing developments, was presented in April this year. Then the development company disclosed basic information about the project, and also showed an image of a cannon and an armor-piercing shot.
The new concept of the weapon system was named ASCALON (Autoloaded and SCALable Outperforming guN - "Scalable weapon with increased performance and automatic loader"). He proposes the creation of a set of technologies and solutions, on the basis of which a tank gun with the necessary characteristics can be developed. At the same time, in all cases, regardless of the caliber and other parameters of such a system, superiority over the current 120-mm smoothbore guns will be ensured.
The current stage of the project, providing for the creation of basic technologies, will last until 2025. After that, the ASCALON project will be considered in the context of the MGCS program and the necessary conclusions will be drawn. If it meets the requirements for the future MBT, work will continue - already in the direction of creating a full-fledged system based on new solutions.
General view of the ASCALON cannon and an armor-piercing shot in section. Nexter Graphics
Until recently, Nexter showed only computer-generated images of new products, but now it has come down to mock-ups. In September, at the DSEI-2021 exhibition, for the first time, they showed the appearance of promising unitary shots in the caliber of 140 mm. Perhaps these developments will be developed in the future and will be included in the ammunition load of a real MGCS tank.
Implement concept
In the published materials, Nexter showed the general appearance of the ASCALON gun and revealed its main features. The only image so far shows a cannon with a long barrel, a muzzle brake, an ejector and a bend sensor. The main part of the barrel is placed inside an angular heat-shielding casing. The breech of the gun cannot be seen in the presented image, although individual elements of recoil devices and other details are noticeable.
Due to new materials and manufacturing technologies, the barrel for ASCALON, regardless of caliber, will be distinguished by increased strength and increased resource. Energy performance has also been improved. A cannon with an optimized chamber (the caliber of this modification is not specified) will be able to impart energy up to 10 MJ to the kinetic projectile while maintaining the pressure in the channel lower than that of existing systems. Increasing the pressure within the permissible limits will increase the energy up to 13 MJ. It is estimated that this will be enough to combat armored targets for the next 50 years.
An original muzzle brake with optimized gas distribution is offered. The latter is necessary to reduce the negative impact of the tank on the accompanying infantry or equipment. Improved recoil devices are also being developed. Due to all these funds, the ASCALON cannon will have a low recoil and can be used on platforms weighing less than 50 tons.
The design characteristics of the ASCALON cannon or cannons have not yet been disclosed. Moreover, it is known that they can have a caliber from 120 to 140 mm or even outside this range. The barrel length can remain at the level of current systems - approx. 50 clb. At the same time, a sharp increase in combat qualities will be ensured.
Progressive ammunition
The ASCALON series cannons will have to use specially designed telescopic ammunition. Due to this, shots of all calibers, up to the maximum, will have a total length of no more than 1,3 m. In this form factor, it will be possible to develop shots with projectiles for various purposes.
Projectiles developed by Nexter. The largest items in the center are the 140 mm guided and armor-piercing rounds. Photo Twitter.com/Sam_Cranny
First of all, it is planned to develop an armor-piercing sub-caliber projectile with a detachable master device. A mock-up of such a product in caliber 140 mm was shown at a recent exhibition. A characteristic feature of this projectile is a cylindrical sleeve with a slight taper in front of the muzzle, from which only a small part of the pallet and the projectile protrudes. The previously published diagram shows that the projectile is centered inside the sleeve by a special holding device.
Another exhibition model was a shot mock-up with a guided projectile for firing from closed positions. A projectile of this type will be able to fly up to 16 km and show high accuracy. The relatively large caliber of the product simplifies the placement of controls, and also allows the use of a more powerful warhead.
In all likelihood, shots with shells of other classes will be developed in the future. ASCALON can receive cumulative, high-explosive fragmentation and other shells. For shooting from closed positions, a guided missile shot can be created.
Aids
The name of the new project includes the possibility of equipping the gun with an automatic loader. At the same time, the machine itself was not demonstrated anywhere and, probably, this issue has not yet been fully dealt with. Most likely, questions of this kind will be worked out already at the stage of development of a promising tank - if, of course, the ASCALON cannon is chosen for it.
Based on the experience of the Leclerc project, the MGCS tank can be equipped with an automatic loader with mechanical stowage in the rear of the tower, which feeds shots to the ramming line. Nevertheless, other schemes are possible, corresponding to the layout of the fighting compartment and the wishes of the customer.
Fire tests of a 130-mm gun of German design. Photo by Rheinmetall Defense
The ASCALON cannon will operate under the control of some advanced fire control system. In all likelihood, in terms of its composition and capabilities, it will be similar to a modern LMS, but it will need to provide for new modes and functions. In particular, the MSA will have to ensure the full and effective use of guided projectiles / missiles when firing beyond the line of sight.
Armored plans
In general, the concept project of the ASCALON tank gun from Nexter is of great interest from a technical point of view and is quite capable of attracting potential customers. This project combines well-mastered ideas and new solutions, which is expected to provide an advantageous ratio of technical, combat and economic characteristics, as well as provide superiority over the current guns of all models.
Nevertheless, it is too early to talk about the real prospects of ASCALON. At the moment, this project is at the stage of developing key technologies, and its only real results so far are several mock-ups of shots. They plan to move to the stage of designing real samples only in the middle of the decade.
Moreover, the fate of the Nexter project and the transition to the next stage depend on the future decision of the customer. For a place in the MGCS program, not only the ASCALON concept claims, but also the NG 130 gun from Rheinmetall Defense. Despite the smaller caliber, it shows high performance and, what is important, has already reached firing tests. Which of the guns France and Germany will choose for their new tank is unknown. At the same time, the emergence of new projects participating in the competition cannot be ruled out.
Obviously, Nexter is interested in getting new contracts, incl. for the production of guns for the tanks of the future. In this regard, she will continue to work on the ASCALON theme and will do her best to win the future competition. Time will tell whether these efforts will lead to the desired result. At the same time, the developer company has every reason to hope for a victory over competitors.
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